Drastic Measures
by KiwiDayDreams
Summary: Shepard decides to use her newly acquired little black dress to finally get Joker's attention. When the pilot doesn't even mention her unusual attire she's shocked, but doesn't plan on losing this battle so easily. Kink meme request.
1. Little Black Dress

Shepard had once read that the key to feeling sexy was wearing the right clothes. She had come across the article quite by accident; a ridiculous side-story on a news feed she had been reading. At the time she had felt more amused than informed by the reading. Why on Earth would wearing lacy undergarments underneath your everyday work clothes make you feel more attractive? Shepard had tried wearing the silken things before and found them more bothersome than anything. Her active lifestyle just didn't allow for underwear that slipped and slid and rode up beneath her pants. That phase had been very short lived.

Although she found it a tad difficult at times, Shepard would concede when she knew she had made a rash judgment. Where the lingerie had failed at making her feel like some ravishing sex goddess, the dress Kasumi had provided her put a strut in her step and a sway in her hips. She appreciated that the dress was not long and flowing, not frilly and gaudy. It was very basic and still very attractive, hugging on her in all the right places without being uncomfortable. It was straight to the point and got the job done: a dress perfect for Commander Shepard.

The point was she looked and felt damn good, something she had never experienced in formal wear (except her blues, if those counted). It was this burst of sensual confidence that sent her sauntering to the cockpit. If anyone could properly appreciate something like this it was Joker. The helmsman was probably the most outspoken when admiring the fairer sex, so she couldn't wait to surprise him with this unusual getup. She bet that it would be priceless. The rest of the crew acted far too professional to even glance waywardly at her as she passed them. That was fine, though. It wasn't as though she had been subtly hinting attraction at them for months now.

Joker didn't initially turn around when she walked up, the tapping of her heels a change from the sound of her boots. Instead, he continued tapping away at the console.

"I already told you, Miss Lawson. I am not shaving my beard," he said, not bothering to hide his agitation. Shepard muffled a laugh and crossed her arms as she watched the chair rotate to face her. The pilot blinked once upon seeing her there rather than Miranda, though that didn't stop him from trying to look behind her for the woman. "Hey,Commander," he said, sounding a little more welcoming now. "How did things go with Kasumi?"

"Just fine. I got to take out a gunship," she offered.

"Not like that's hard for you," Joker replied. "Let me guess, you used your bare hands?" Shepard found his teasing tone endearing as usual, but she wondered vaguely why he hadn't so much as gave her a once-over yet. Oddly enough, Joker's eyes were planted firmly on his Commander's in perfect, respectful eye contact.

"Not so much, just the usual fare...," she said, and then added, "...Luckily I got my armor back by then. I don't know that I could have done it in these heels." That forced Joker to glance down at her feet, though his eyes returned straight to her face as he nodded.

"I'm sure you would have managed," he smiled. "Probably could have used them as a weapon. Heels hurt like a bitch when you're on the receiving end of one."

Shepard forgot her frustration, if only for a moment, to cock a brow at him.

"It wasn't my fault. I got caught in the middle of a lovers' spat. Girl was pretty sweet, though. She felt so bad about damn near fracturing my skull that she bought me lunch."

"Right, well," Shepard shifted to lean on one leg, tilting her hip to the side as she placed a hand on it. Perhaps her militaristic posture was throwing him off, making him feel the need to be a little too formal with her. Then again, when had he ever had that problem? "I won't be wearing them often enough to do that. It's just nice to try something new every now and again." Her free hand reached up to brush her hair behind her ear. She was starting to feel like a bit of an idiot posing there for him. At the very least he seemed to be catching on as she watched his eyes squint and head tilt.

"Did you do something with your hair?"

Shepard suddenly felt compelled to grab the pilot and shake him violently if it weren't for the obvious reasons why that might be a bad idea. He had to be toying with her, right? The same man who she had caught listening to porn in the cockpit not a week ago couldn't be immune to his Commander in a skin-tight dress! Suddenly, a little pit of fear settled into her stomach. It wasn't possible, was it? They had a friendly enough relationship and Joker always seemed to be at ease around her but it wasn't possible she had been...BRO-ZONED! Desperate, Shepard managed to keep her cool and decided not to jump to conclusions. There was still one thing she could try, and it would tell her whether or not her attraction to the helmsman was on the course for certain one-sided doom.

Not entirely believing she was stooping to age old tricks such as these, Shepard bent over and made like she was adjusting her shoe. She made it a point so pause like this long enough to give him a good look at her rarely exposed cleavage. Rising back to her full height she could barely contain the smirk fully expecting to have finally hooked his attention.

"Damnit, EDI. I told you not to rearrange my data logs! I put them that way for a reason!" Shepard blanched at the sight of the back of Joker's chair. The color quickly rushed back to her face as she felt a swell of rage. Joker jumped when he heard a yell and felt something smack into the back of his seat, turning enough to see the solitary heel clatter to the floor. Shepard was already hobbling away from the cockpit with the one heel on her foot lopsiding her march.

"Someone's got her panties in a wad..." he said, swiveling the chair back to face the console.

"Shepard's behavior is not likely to be the result of misaligned underclothes, Jeff. Military issue garments are designed to prevent such discomfort. It is most probable that you are the cause of her outburst," EDI noted.

"Me? I didn't do anything," he replied, raising a brow at the accusation. "Wait... You know what kind of underwear she wears?"

"That is exactly it, Mr. Moreau. Your lack of action is what the Commander found undesirable."

"You lost me." EDI was silent a moment.

"Perhaps there was something different about Shepard that she had hoped you would notice." When he continued to stare at her sphere, she added, "Like her unusual choice of clothing."

"What? That glove of a dress she had on?" Joker concluded, giving a dismissive chuckle as he continued putting his files back where he wanted them. "Like I'm going to gawk and make lewd comments at the woman who headbutts Krogan. My bones wouldn't stand a chance."

"It may be that the Commander would have responded more favorably than you suspect."

"It's not nice to tease people, EDI. Shepard has her pick of guys throwing themselves at her, likely to triple when she becomes the savior of the universe after defeating the Reapers. I'm her pilot, for god's sake, not the guy watching her back in the field."

"You should not downplay your role in things, Jeff. You have given Shepard and her team a means of escape out of numerous otherwise fatal situations."

"Oh, don't get me wrong. I know I'm totally kick-ass at what I do, but you'll have to forgive me if I don't dive head-first into the delusion that she's got googoo eyes for me."

"You are experiencing a feeling of inadequacy," EDI stated. Joker shifted in the chair and focused on the screen a little harder.

"Can I get a little quiet-time, please? I'm still trying to make sense out of what you did here," he muttered. Much to his relief, the AI granted him the peace he asked for. For something that was supposed to be ultimately logical, she sure got a lot of ridiculous ideas planted in her program. Did he find his Commander attractive? Of course. She put every action-hero he had ever idolized in his childhood to shame, accomplishing things people would talk about for ages. Treating him as an equal had won him over on day one, and he enjoyed that their relationship was more friendly than military. But she was Commander Shepard, and she had more interesting prospects than a pilot who was stuck in his cockpit all day.

* * *

><p>"I think you're being rash. Joker is a very reserved man when it comes to opening up, but I wouldn't say he has no interest in women. It may be that he is intimidated by you. Perhaps if you act a little more vulnerable and feminine around him-"<p>

"Kelly, I appreciate all the advice and reassurances and everything. Truly. But could you do me a huge favor?"

"What's that, Commander?"

"Shut up and go away."

The redheaded yeoman pursed her lips as if she made to protest, but Shepard's heavy stare told her that her superior was not going to ask again. She sighed in defeat, certain she could assist the Commander through this trial if she would just open up. Some were tougher to crack than others and Kelly took Shepard's blunt remark in stride, attributing it to her already sour mood.

"Yes, ma'am," she replied dutifully and rose from her seat at the mess hall table to return to her post. As Shepard took another hefty bite of her sandwich filled to the brim with every fixing and condiment available, she almost felt a little bad for taking things out on the yeoman. But truth be told, the girl was a busybody and had a bad habit of throwing her opinions and psychoanalysis right where it wasn't wanted. Granted, Shepard had a similar problem except that 'opinions' and 'psychoanalysis' were replaced roughly with ' fists' and 'gun'.

_Be more vulnerable and feminine, she says. I was practically stripped down to my unmentionables right in front of him and I got nothing._Shepard swiped up her drink and chugged some to help clear an overly-ambitious bite of her lunch. Some women turned to romance films and ice cream when they had suffered rejection and loss – Shepard promptly made a complete slob of herself to emphasize the fact that she really didn't give a shit about anything, if only to prove it to herself. She wiped some mayonnaise and mustard from her mouth and licked her fingertips clean, not bothering to hide the noise the gestures made as she continued to drown herself in roast beef and salami.

"I'll have what she's having." Shepard stopped chewing with her cheeks stuffed as she heard the voice. Why? Why, oh why? He hardly ever left his chair to fucking pee much less take a lunch break! What made today special? Did the forces that be think it would be hilarious timing?

"I hohpe yur fuggin happy," she snarled out around the mouthful as she raised her eyes accusingly upward. The powers responded by taking the opportunity to twist the knife, because suddenly he was there at her table. He didn't even have the courtesy to ask if the seat was taken, but rather settled down right in front of her with the very same stacked lunch she had ordered.

"I'll give it to you, Commander," Joker chuckled as he set the plate down. "You know how to make a meal look good."

"What?" she muffled out, hunching down a little further over her meal and looking only a few features short of a bridge troll with bits of lettuce and bread sticking out of her full mouth.

"Well, it's gotta be good if you're wolfing it down like that, right?" he said, gesturing to her before taking up his own sandwich. Shepard's jaw began to slowly move similar to a cow chewing grass, though her eyes narrowed in a more feline manner. "You've got a head start on me, but I bet I can finish mine before you. Loser buys drinks and lap dances!" His smile and sing-song tone was meant to be playfully challenging, but Shepard's hands slammed on the table so hard it quickly changed to one of surprise. "Or not." Maybe she wasn't the competitive type, though that was hard to believe.

"I'm done eating...," she droned and rose to her feet with plate and all in hand. He watched her march toward Gardner's counter and unceremoniously drop the dishes into the sink before heading for the elevator. Joker sat in confusion, wondering what the hell that was all about. His thoughts drifted back to what EDI had said earlier and he set the sandwich down, resting his head in a hand. Did Shepard really expect him to start spouting tired one-liners and compliments? That didn't sound like Shepard! He had come to the mess in hopes of talking to her to see if there may have been something to EDI's observations, but she hardly seemed smitten. Too much to hope for, he supposed.

* * *

><p>Joker settled smugly, though not without a small sense of disappointment, in the fact that he had been right. He planned to parade the fact in front of EDI as soon as he finished eating and got back to the cockpit. When he actually returned, however, the thought had completely escaped him and was replaced by thoughts of none other than Commander Shepard. Even though she had been less than friendly he found himself amused at her ravenous appetite. He could appreciate a woman who wasn't afraid to properly enjoy her meal unhindered by the frivolities of dainty lady-manners that made it hard to gauge whether or not she actually liked her food. Part of him still wondered who would have won their race had she taken him up on the offer.<p>

"Jeff," EDI's holo chimed in through his daydreaming. His eyes snapped back to the console, but found nothing unusual so he leaned back into his chair.

"What?" he asked, clearing his throat when the word came out a little bit strained. He promptly shuffled the thought of Shepard licking the sauce from her lips away.

"I could not help but notice your unusual change in behavior."

"What change?" he scoffed.

"You have been silent for the past thirty-four minutes and six seconds."

"So? I can be quiet, can't I?"

"According to my records...no."

"You got a point or can I do my job in peace?"

"I have concluded that your meeting with Shepard did not go as desired."

"It went fine, EDI," he said, emphasizing her name with pointed agitation. "Exactly how I expected, in fact."

"That's not true, Joker!" The pilot jolted where he sat and whipped his head around looking for the owner of the third voice. He startled again and planted his face into his palm when Kelly peeked out from one side of his chair.

"Damnit, Chambers, could ya walk a little heavier?" He then mumbled, "I told Shepard I needed a mirror..."

"I'm really sorry to have scared you, Joker. I just didn't want to interrupt your conversation with EDI," she soothed and moved to stand beside him now.

"There was no conversation and you didn't scare me," he defended, suddenly becoming very focused on his work at hand.

"Joker, you have to understand that this is all a huge misunderstanding. Shepard wants to be closer to you, but she just doesn't know how to go about it." Joker leaned away from her with slightly disturbed look. "You just need to let her know that you _notice _her."

"As I said, Jeff," EDI reinforced.

"Just tell her how you _feel_."

"A direct approach may be the best option in this situation."

"Okay, ladies! That's enough insanity for one night!" Joker interrupted, slapping his hands together so hard they tingled. "I'm going to go to bed." As he shuffled out of his chair and up onto his feet, he cursed his bones for not allowing him to get out of this nightmare fast enough. He ignored Kelly's deliberate pout and whatever it was EDI might be doing as he turned his back to them and limped into the hallway.

"It's not healthy to run away from your problems, Joker!" Kelly called. "I'm here for you!" Joker didn't acknowledge whether or not he heard her, though she thought she saw him stumble a little as he hurried away from the cockpit. She pressed a finger to her lips and shook her head solemnly. "So sad..."

"There is no need for distress, Miss Chambers," EDI spoke up. "Mr. Moreau is very independent by nature, but like most humans he is also very impressionable. It is likely this situation will resolve itself."

"I understand your logic, but how so?

"The fact that Jeff departed the cockpit to seek out the Commander on his own terms suggests that he has become open to the idea of mutual interest. Commander Shepard may have been momentarily deterred, but her history suggests that she will not submit to defeat easily."

"So Shepard is likely to confront him again, and since Mr. Moreau is more susceptible to the idea now, things should go much smoother," Kelly concluded.

"Given that their personalities do have erratic qualities, smooth may not be the correct term, but an amicable resolution is probable."

"That's great news! I didn't know you were programmed to hold an interest in emotional development, EDI."

"My involvement is far more simple than that, Miss Chambers."

"How so?"

"I ship it."


	2. Games

Joker sat up in his bed, eyes bleary with sleep as they tried to focus in the darkness of the crew's quarters. This had been the third time he had woken up since retiring for the cycle. He didn't even have to look to know why he was awake, the strain beneath his covers perfectly apparent on its own. He had been dreaming about Shepard almost non stop all night. This last one had involved her washing the Normandy in little more than the underclothes he had never personally seen. Never mind that washing the Normandy by hand was ludicrous, but his Commander had been doing things with that sponge that didn't exactly elicit feelings of being clean.

"Damn you, EDI," he muttered as he flipped the covers aside and tossed his cap on. If he wasn't going to be able to sleep, he may as well return to the cockpit. He glanced at the clock and was relieved to find that enough time had passed that most of the crew would have gone to bed by now. With echoes of those steamy dreams in his head, the last thing he wanted to do was run into anyone, especially after what happened earlier with Kelly and EDI. Gathering up his Cerberus issue uniform, he hobbled out towards the mess hall and, as expected, found it empty as he headed for the elevator. He preferred being in the cockpit around this hour when everything was quiet. It was a rare bit of private time he rather enjoyed. Unfortunately, it seemed that it wouldn't be as private as he may have hoped.

"Excuse me," he said, trying to hide the agitation in his voice. Who in their right mind would sit in his chair – his chair? When they didn't respond he grasped the back of it and whirled it around, granting him a small, startled noise from the intruder. "Shepard? Uh..!" Joker suddenly became conflicted about whether he should be throwing on the uniform or leave the bundle where it was twisted in his arms, blocking the fading proof of his less than innocent dreams.

"Joker!" Shepard declared, the headset she had been wearing sitting haphazardly on her head now as she curled up in his chair. The two exchanged more than a glance in the awkward silence. Joker was standing there, exposed more than Shepard had ever had the (apparently very lovely) pleasure of seeing. Similarly, Shepard was in nothing but a pair of standard issue boy shorts and a plain tank top.

"What are you doing here?" Joker asked, just barely avoiding the crack in his voice.

"I came to see you, actually. But you weren't here," she replied, sounding much more at ease than she felt. He watched her shift in his chair, toes curling up against the leather as she pulled the headset off and mussed her hair. Joker tried and failed not to find the entire picture hopelessly endearing.

"Well, I'm here... So, what did you need?" he asked, winding the clothes tighter in his arms. Shepard hummed, covering her lips with a hand to muffle a laugh.

"What?" Joker asked.

"Do you fly the Normandy in your underwear often?" she grinned.

"Wh-? I was going to put my uniform on."

"What if someone had seen you?"

"What if they saw _you_?" he retorted calmly, raising a brow. Shepard stopped laughing and glanced down at herself. "And a better question is, why are _you_wandering around in your underwear?"

"It's not underwear. It's my PJs."

"Well, so are these. And you still haven't told me what you wanted." Shepard nodded and rose from the chair, padding over to him on her bare feet. Joker kept the now fully wrinkled uniform between them in meager defense.

"I couldn't sleep, so I was going to ask if you wanted to watch some vids... But I'm too tired now... so I'm going to go to bed. I left the movie up, though. You should watch it...really begins and ends with a _bang_." Joker relaxed a little and returned her smile with a nod, though the brush of her hand on his shoulder as she left made him shiver. Noting that the chair was still pleasantly warm as he settled into it, he tossed the uniform aside and turned towards the console. It was really too bad he had missed out on her offer, but maybe he could to make it up to her later. Curious to see what she had been watching, he slipped on the headphones and brought up the vid...and about shat himself.

"_Yes, yes! Oh, harder! Unh, unh, unh!"_

Shepard took her time reaching the elevator, padding cautiously along the cold metallic floor on her bare feet. Once inside the lift she took a moment to really admire the control panel and let her fingertips hover over her selection for a little longer than normal. The beginnings of a shuffling noise through the emptiness of the CIC prompted her to finally activate the holo, and when the doors began to close she counted backwards from three.

Joker's hand caught the doors at the last possible moment. Luckily for him the sensors were extra sensitive or else he may have fractured a few fingers trying to halt the elevator. Shepard lifted her head and tried her best to look surprised as he stumbled into the confined space with her.

"Decided to go back to bed?" she asked, absently watching as she rubbed at one of her nails with her thumb.

"This is driving me crazy," the pilot stated. He stood facing forward just as she did, a comfortable distance between them. As the elevator moved through the Normandy, the draft suddenly reminded him he was still in his underwe – pajamas.

"What is?" She finally offered him a look when he stepped in front of her to disengage the elevator in between destinations.

"This," he said, gesturing wildly as he limped about the small space anxiously.

"That's easy enough to fix, Joker. Just push the right buttons and we'll be on our way," Shepard offered. When he looked at her with the most scrutinizing expression she had ever seen, she could barely contain her grin. It was unfathomable for him that she could actually mean things exactly as he was interpreting them. It had to all be in his own head, certainly. Commander Shepard didn't make off-hand and witty innuendos. That was his job.

"You're mad at me. That's why you're doing this," he said, pausing his pacing to jab a finger at her.

"Why would I be mad at you?"

"EDI said you got pissed because I didn't ogle you the other day."

"Pft. When did you start listening to EDI? It was just another uniform, after all. I don't need anyone to ogle me."

"That's what I said!" he declared. "Then, before I know it, I've got Kelly AND EDI harassing me about how I don't appreciate you enough. They don't get it at all."

"What don't they get?" she pressed, rubbing her arms with her hands to smooth away the goosebumps from the elevator's chill.

"You don't need some guy following you around complimenting every little thing you do. You're the epitome of awesome, Shepard, and you know that." He had opted to lean against the wall now, giving his legs some relief.

Shepard watched him and let his words gradually register as he hung his head so his eyes were hidden by the bill of his cap. "You hear it all the time...from everyone. You know you're smart...fiery..." His jaw shifted and he spoke a little quieter. "Beautiful...Everything any sane man could ever want..."

Shepard dropped her arms to her sides and walked over to him, remaining a small, guarded distance apart.

"You know the funny thing is, Joker... Jeff. If there's anything I've learned while trying to make good with every damn species in the galaxy...it's that, sometimes, people don't listen unless the right person is talking to them.'

"Isn't that why you end up shooting people?" Joker asked, lifting his head with a crooked expression. It was a sight that relieved Shepard to no end. You really couldn't keep a good Joker down.

"Yes, but it's usually because they're talking too much and it bores me."

"Did I mention vicious? You're vicious."

"Not what I expected, but that's a start," Shepard chuckled, rolling her shoulders a little before Joker suddenly seized them in his hands and pulled her into a kiss. It was nothing overly passionate, his lips warm and unmoving against hers, pausing in the moment to just feel and hope. Easily lost in this simplest of gestures where she could feel his breath on her mouth and his fingers on her skin, Shepard realized something about her pilot she would have never guessed. There was nothing that Joker didn't have a comeback for, nothing that he wouldn't say given the right set up. When it came to things like this, however, his wit and words abandoned him. When they failed to carry him through...that was when he became a man of action.

When their lips finally parted, she felt him breathe a soft laugh against her mouth.

"I'm not very good at this...," he murmured as he let her hair slide from his fingertips. "Don't exactly get much practice at it..."

"You're pretty good at navigating on instinct...," Shepard reminded him. "I think you're doing well so far."

"Well, you haven't decked me yet. I guess that's a plus." He grinned as his Commander rolled her eyes at him.

"Do you honestly think I'm that rash or are you just teasing me?"

"Me, tease?" His eyes grazed over her form in the dim light of the elevator as his tone took on a hint of a deeper meaning. "Only if you ask me to, Commander."

"Aha," Shepard said, waggling a finger at him. "You were lying. You know exactly what you're doing."

"Shepard, anyone can drop innuendos. I'm king of that, trust me."

"Oh, I do."

"But I will say, with complete and utter loathing and more than sufficient wounded pride, that I have not been intimate with a woman in a long time." Shepard studied her pilot, searching his face and eyes and found that he was, in fact, being completely honest. She felt a pang of guilt for being so angry with him before. He was obviously interested given the kiss they had just shared, but in this he was actually defensive and unsure of himself. It made sense that he might not have been intimately active with his condition, but she had just assumed he might turn to other means. There were plenty of respectable places a man looking for companionship for the night could go. Perhaps even that idea intimidated him, though she knew he would never admit it. Better not to pry. He was already starting to look uncomfortable.

Shepard stepped in close to him and soothed his worries with a simple brush of her lips on his. She kissed him soft and slow a few times, before letting one linger. Joker made an audible grunt in his throat when she pulled back.

"Better late than never, Mr. Moreau," she smiled. She reached over to the holo on to reactivate the elevator and direct it towards her quarters.

Joker felt his heart drumming in his ears as the elevator opened and his Commander led him out towards her room. One glimpse of how she bit at her lush lips made all the blood in his head sink elsewhere and he quickly began to feel lightheaded with the rush. She kept the distance between them minimal as they moved, occasionally stealing kisses that left him wanting more. Her hands moved lithely over his arms and guided his palms to her hips as she brought her arms up around him and looked in his eyes. The unfamiliar proximity to the firecracker that was his Commander damn near made the pilot turn red. What was he hesitating for, he thought. She had led him up here, put his hands on her, and hell, she had been watching porn on _his_ console. _Dirty tactics, Commander._ It was a game he could play, too.

Shepard squeaked when his hands moved to her rear and tugged her up against him.

"So, what exactly were you going to do if I had been in my cockpit, Commander?" he asked, ushering away his insecurities for something more familiar.

"Considering I thought I'd been bro-zoned, I thought it would be adequate punishment to try to play the 'bro' and watch some 'bro' vids with you."

"Bros don't watch porn together, Shepard," Joker snickered.

"I thought since I was a woman it was perfectly welcome."

"And if you watched MY porn videos, you'd know that that would lead you right OUT of the bro-zone."

"That's where I got the idea, actually," she grinned mischievously. Joker paused and looked at her thoughtfully.

"I KNEW this felt familiar! Ti'Lara and Zoe's Naughty Girls' Night! My Commander's been watching and replicating my porn! And now she wants to play dirty games with me! What zone am I in?" he asked, looking every which way as if he was ready to hear the eerie theme song and a pointed voice over narrating this peculiar situation to him.

"Well, when you put it like that...," Shepard lolled her head to the side. "I do sound kind of vicious."

"Yes, but that's good! This is good vicious," he noted. "I'm a bad boy and you can punish me all you want!"

"Joker," Shepard intoned flatly.

"Sorry. Just thought I'd run with it and see what happened." He grinned and patted her rear. Shepard nudged his shoulder gently with a hint of a smirk on her lips. The pilot hummed good-humoredly in his throat as he brought his arms up around her waist instead. While her kisses and the heated glimmer in her eyes promised a great deal more, he allowed himself to inwardly admit that this alone contented him. Maybe he should have left it at that, given into that tinge of nervousness in his stomach that made him feel like an inexperienced teenage boy. When she wrapped her arms around his neck and pulled them closer together, however, he realized that running away was not an option. For all the worry of broken bones and awkward moments he was physically incapable of letting her go now that she was in his arms.

All that trouble just trying to get his attention, he thought, amused. He wondered what she would have done had she known she'd had his attention from day one. All these headaches and misunderstandings could have been avoided entirely.

Then again, Joker always did enjoy a bit of a challenge.


End file.
